Worried that even the smallest of moves would alert Matthew, Zayn had not made any prior planning. All he had in mind was swallowing Odello Corp. in one go.It came as a shock then when Matthew snatched away the thick cut of meat that was already in his mouth and ready to be consumed within just one night.This caused Neve to be brutally beaten using the slippers this morning.“I’m helping you guys with everything I have and even when my family asked me to gobble up your company when I had the chance, I didn’t because of you. And this is how you all treat me? Look at me as a fraud and trample all over my kindness?!”Zayn’s pressing questions made Neve speechless. She felt wronged as she did not know what happened. After leaving Zayn, she went to find Matthew.“Daddy, why did you pull back the sales and funds to Odelle Corp. again? Have you gone stupid?”Instead of getting furious at Neve’s questioning, Matthew looked rather triumphant.“Me? Stupid? Your daddy is anything but stu
Neither John nor Matthew took Javier’s warning seriously. They thought that it was no different from a child who threw a “just you wait” after losing a fight. It proved nothing other than he was useless.After Javier left Odello Corp., he found Jade standing at her car and wiping away her tears.“It’s okay. We’ve only lost Odello Corp. We still have Beacon Tires.”Jade shook her head. “I’m not sad about losing the shares. If Grandpa wanted to give those shares to Matthew, he could’ve just told me honestly. Odello Corp. has always been his. I wouldn’t hesitate to give the shares to him.“He shouldn’t have lied to me and played me for a fool. Or trample over my love and respect for him as family.”Instead of offering words, Javier pulled Jade into his embrace. Jade did not resist and snuggled against Javier. She apologized with a sob.“I’m sorry, Javier. You’ve helped me so much, but all your hard work has been ruined because of me.”“It’s okay. I’m responsible too. I shouldn’t
Speeding down the streets, Jade finally arrived at Neve’s place. It was not like she did not question why John was here, but Neve explained that the old man did not want to spend his last moments in a hospital as it was too cold and gloomy.Jade believed the offered explanation. But when she entered the home, she realized that there was no Neve or John in the house. The only person there was Zayn who was sitting in the living room. It then dawned on her that she had been decided by an Odell again.They had lied to her over and over and used her love for her family against her repeatedly. Disappointment flooded her.As Jade turned to open the door and leave, Zayn rushed up to stop her.“Jade, don’t worry. I don’t mean any harm. I just want to talk.”As he blocked the doorway, Zayn put up both his hands like he was surrendering. He was trying to show her that he was harmless and give her confirmation that he did not mean ill. He then told her, “I already know what the Odells did to
As she made her way home that afternoon, Neve wore a triumphant smile on her face. Zayn had gotten his hands on Jade and Neve herself had pleased Zayn significantly. It was killing two birds with one stone.“Stupid Jade. Let’s see how you go on acting all high and mighty now when you’re already tainted goods…”Gloating and feeling victorious about how things had turned out, Neve’s jaw dropped when she arrived at the porch. As she stared at the door frame and doors that had been blasted off currently laying on the ground, she wondered what had happened. Was it…an earthquake?She hurriedly called Zayn to ask about it but no one answered, so she immediately drove over. She needed to ask Zayn what he did that was so devastating.When she found him, he threw a punch at her even before she could ask anything. What followed were more kicks and punches as Zayn continuously beat Neve for over ten minutes. During the process of it, Zayn gritted his teeth and did not offer a word. He did no
From a certain viewpoint, Matthew was a decisive person. He managed to transfer 70% of the corporation’s subsidiaries to Zayn within two days due to the blind trust that John had for him.Zayn had learned his lesson. He immediately chomped down on every piece of meat he was fed.Matthew was still transferring the businesses with all his efforts, afraid that John would find out if he moved too slow. John found out anyway when he came to check on the accounts that afternoon. Now that the majority of the subsidiaries had been sold, they should have a significant amount.Lo and behold, the account was empty! Not a single cent from the sale of their subsidiary businesses had been banked in.John summoned Matthew to his office immediately to ask about it. When Matthew realized that he could no longer hide it, he told his father the truth, adding at the end, “Dad, don’t worry. Zayn said that he’ll give the companies back to us after this passes. I’ll start a new Odello Corp. by then and t
Neve had not been forthcoming about her situation with Zayn. But from what he was seeing, Matthew understood everything clearly. The 1.5 million dollar diamond ring and whatever about getting ready to propose had all been a ruse made up by Zayn to deceive a fool.Many times, Matthew was no fool—given that no chairman position was involved. When he was younger, he had to compete against his brilliant elder brother, and recently, said brother’s daughter. There was nothing he could do. He wanted the throne and was willing to risk it all even when he knew the stakes were high.The reality had thoroughly proved that he had not made it.Matthew originally had the intention of pleading with Zayn. But when he saw Zayn’s attitude toward Neve and what he said to her, he knew that it would be futile. Now that the chairman throne and the assets he had given away in his own hands were out of reach, he had nothing left.The only thought he had right now was to use the screwdriver he held to stab
After leaving the office, Javier drove over to the Dunham Group. At the same time, Zayn was seated in his office, soaking in his underlings’ obsequious praises and bootlicking.“Mr. Dunham is young and brilliant. He’s the most successful one among all the young people I know.”“That…what’s the name? Reivaj Group doesn’t even know who they’re messing with. How dare they declare war against the Dunham Group. I think they’re on a suicide mission. Especially that Javier Kersey. Who does he think he is to fight our dear Mr. Dunham. He’s not even qualified to do such a thing, that piece of sh*t!”“It’s interesting how he dares pick a fight against Mr. Dunham. Reivaj Group doesn’t even have 7.8 million dollars in total assets. What does he have to fight Mr. Dunham with? Any subsidiary that Mr. Dunham casually appoints would kick him in the *ss…”The employees chorused each other as they clamored to pander to Zayn, the heir of the company. The apple polishing worked well on Zayn as he even
This meant that Zayn would be enjoying a “marvelous” treat when he was put behind bars. Once he thought of it, he felt shivers down his spine and could not help shuddering. Zayn was scared. Not wanting that to happen, he told Javier, “Buddy, let’s negotiate, hmm? I can give you some of it perhaps? They belong to Odello Corp. after all. We can split 70-30 between me and you, or even just 60 for me and 40 for you!”At the man’s reaction, Javier was rendered speechless. He would rather lose his freedom than his wealth.“Sure, that’s all to it then since you can’t wait to go to jail!”Zayn stopped Javier again when he expressed that he was leaving and begged him. He then said that it was not his decision to make and had to ask his father, the chairman of The Dunham Group. Leaving Javier in the office, Zayn hurried to his father, Geoffrey Dunham’s office. Geoffrey, who was going through some documents, asked when he saw Zayn entering, “You’re not in your office—”He did not get to c
As Bernadetta launched a barrage of kicks against the restaurant door, Mrs. Greene summoned 120% of her strength, holding the fort. The older woman had made a living terrorizing others with absurd accusations and downright unreasonable demands, but this time, she had met her match. Bernadetta James put the “man” in the word “woman”—in that she resorted to violence as soon as things escalated. In the end, it took both Mrs. Greene’s apology and a deal to provide Javier and Bernadetta with three days’ meals, all free of charge, to make the young woman stop. Then—“because I actually have a weakness against people sincerely appealing to my better angels,” according to Bernadetta—she amended the peace offer, changing the three days’ free meals to…a week’s worth. Back in the inn, Javier expressed his heartfelt gratitude to Bernadetta for rescuing him. “I can’t thank you enough for standing by my side when I needed it the most, Bern. But I can thank you a bit more if you refrain from using t
Mrs. Greene opened her flap and unlocked the floodgate, the spit during her tirade so profusive that she could water an old lady’s lawn. “It’s him, officers! It’s all him! He did this to his own camera just to remove himself as a suspect, but we know better than that! He’s the guy who stole my goddamn lingerie!”She turned and trained her finger on Javier. “You vile, disgusting, degenerate piece of sh*t! Ptooey!”‘Back at you! I'd rather spend the night with my left hand than with you!’ By this point in the morning, Bernadetta had arrived at work. Her heels clicked onto the floor as she sauntered toward the commotion. As soon as she heard what had transpired, she laughed, looking clearly amused. She trained her perfectly manicured finger on Javier and piled on. “Oh, it was him. I can testify to that! He stole Mrs. Greene’s bra because he is…the Lingerie Phantom Thief! By day, he is Javier Kersey. At night, he is Jo Ker, the Bra Stealer!” Javier threw his arms up in exasperation
Javier shook his head. By the time his vision was back to normal, the dog was gone. It had escaped! “What kind of hell spawned this little sh*t?!” Javier wondered to himself aloud. “Was this really an effect of the world changing? Is this an example of mutation because of the Storm? Or is there something else at play?”Baffled and unsure what to think, Javier returned to the dorm and told the residents to open the door. Inside, he found Florence huddling the frightened kids closely. She was white from fear, and yet in the presence of vulnerable kids, she had assumed the role of the protector without a second thought. “Hush, it’s alright! It was fake. Someone pulled a terrible prank and put on this white sheet and…” Javier made up a fib to explain the haunting away exactly because the truth could land him in a mental institution. No one would believe him—and for good reason too!Javier drove Florence back to the Yuzuian restaurant, where the latter’s electric scooter was. While
A resentful wail—interspersed only by sobs that sounded more like someone was being strangled—was echoing in the middle of the night while Javier and Florence could not see even a single soul out there? Animated by the power of “hell, naw!”, Florence dove into Javier’s arms for protection. Her hands were clasped firmly on either side of her head, hoping to block out the ghastly demand in her ears. Her eyes were squeezed so tightly shut that even a crowbar could not pry them open.Javier himself was just as terrified. He would have felt better if he could see the source of the voice rather than just hear a woman sobbing about getting her head back. At least he would know what he was up against! But just hearing it without any visuals at all?! Nooooope!Then, Florence hugged him in a “help-me!” sort of way. She was soft and supple—damn, that sexy figure in combination with her silky-smooth skin sure was welcoming. She was warm, and damn did she smell good! Nothing competed with fea
The dog barked in protest as it pointed its paw at Javier with the intensity of a mob before executing a monarch. The flames in its eyes were so bright that they could incinerate Javier into ashes in milliseconds. In the end, though, all that protest was for naught. Constance tied it up in the parking garage, while Javier watched in glee. Ah, sweet, sweet revenge! The stupid dog had thought it could set him up, had it? That would teach it!The look the Pomeranian shot him almost felt like a threat: ‘Just you f*cking wait, hooman!’‘Wait for what? How much can a stupid b*tch like you do to me?’ Javier scoffed in his mind. Now that the four-legged pest was gone, Javier turned back to Constance and talked about the new orphanage. As it turned out, despite the old woman’s sentiments for the building she had founded, she was a lot less obstinate and unreasonable as she might appear. “I mean, I don’t object to it completely. I know the new place is gonna be better, but…” She faltered a
Florence called half an hour later to tell him where they’d be having dinner. After leaving the inn in Bernadetta’s care, he hurried to the venue. Florence had picked a newly-opened Yuzuian restaurant. Javier had never liked Yuzuian restaurants, but since Florence had invited him, courtesy stopped him from asking the woman to change their meeting venue. He found Florence quickly enough and sat across from her. They placed their orders, and Javier began his performance: He started sighing and doing his best to look forlorn. It intrigued Florence enough to ask what was wrong, and Javier told her about his unfortunate beef with Constance that day.“It’s so unfair, man! Why would I bully a dog for no reason?” he moaned. “I’m sure Aunt Constance misunderstood. You’re a knightly, heroic, kind man! How could someone like you possibly get off on hurting a dog? I’m sure Aunt Constance was just too worried about the dog’s welfare to think things through. She didn’t mean it. I can vouch for
Herschel was dressed quite sharply today. It was the full ensemble—black leather shoes, black slacks, a white collar, and last but not least, the good old oil-slicked hair. The typical look of a high-ranking office worker, just as Javier had requested. Ordering him to get in his car, Javier asked, “You brought all the stuff I told you to?”“Yo, I would never forget the stuff my boss told me to bring. I’ve got all the preparations down pat. You can check ‘em if you don’t trust me,” Herschel replied. He fished an ID and some documents out of his leather bag. “See? All the documentation a journalist in the most important room of a news agency would have.”After a round-check and some instructions, Javier sent Herschel on his way to complete his mission. The man was strangely reluctant, though. “Boss, you told me you decided to work in that inn, right? Does that mean, you know, that you’re gonna call me ‘boss’ while you’re there?”Javier had almost forgotten he had mentioned this. It
Javier’s suspicion turned to Constance Hellman’s white Pomeranian. He turned to the director’s office and met the dog’s eyes. With its paws on the windowsill, it hoisted itself up to look out of the window. Seeing the dog cracking a lopsided grin and baring its fangs—beaming as smugly as a teacher’s pet who had managed to subdue everyone through the power of being the boss’s favorite—made it look both amusing and chilling. It would have been had the dog not caught Javier’s gaze, suddenly dropped the smile, and put on a face that seemed to be saying, ‘I’m just your average dog! Nothing to see here!’And then it feigned—yes, feigned—a yawn as its one last measure to cover up the fact that it had been laughing smugly to itself. ‘What. The. Actual. F*ck?!’ Javier thundered in his mind. ‘B*tch’s a natural actress! What’s it doing here instead of being interviewed on a talk show after becoming viral on TikTok?’In combination with Russell’s report, the incident inside the director’s of
As Javier was befuddled, Constance rushed in from outside and picked up the white Pomeranian gingerly to carefully check its injured leg.“Oh, baby, what’s the matter? Did you hurt your leg?”The white Pomeranian whined in pain and began twitching upon hearing Constance’s concerned question. This upset Constance so much that she admonished him sternly. “Mr. Kersey, I thought that you were a loving person, but I can’t help doubting your motive now.“I’m skeptical about you taking good care of the kids here when you’d even hit a cute dog!”Javier felt extremely offended. When had he hit the dog? He hurriedly explained, “Madam Hellman, I didn’t do anything!”Constance asked angrily, “You didn’t do anything? Why would it suddenly limp now and whine so pathetically? Why did it hurry over to me? Give me a reasonable explanation!”Javier was in distress as well. “How would I know? It was fine when I was carrying it just now, but it wanted to get down on the floor, so I carefully placed